AA announces Housekeeper of the Year Award 2012

Three top Housekeepers celebrated in style the annual AA Housekeeper of the Year lunch. The annual awards sponsored by Northmace & Hendon is in its fourth year of running, was held at St James Hotel in London.

Jolanta Vasiliauskiene, winner of the AA Housekeeper of the Year award, joined Rocco Forte’s Brown’s Hotel in August 2006. Jolanta is responsible for managing the housekeeping team which includes 44 people plus agency workers.  The judges selected Jolanta as the overall winner due to her passion about her role and she is continuously striving to improve the experience of her guests. She is dedicated and committed to ensuring that her team of staff are happy and motivated and has developed a training calendar to ensure that all of her team are learning as much as they possibly can about the department and about the hotel.

Runner up Regina Zemaitiene has worked for the Macdonald Bath Spa Hotel for over a year and manages over 40 members of Housekeeping staff. Regina is passionate, proud and always positive about what can be achieved to provide the guests with the best experience and exceed their expectations.The hotels HR manager Lynne Watkins praised Regina for her commitment and the obstacles she needs to overcome. ‘She is extremely loyal and deserves to be recognised for her efforts and hard work’.

Runner up Sandra Dean has worked at the Casa Hotel since the opening in November 2010 and manages at team of 13 people and has been nothing but committed to the hotel. Sandra has created a strong team with extremely high standards and has a genuine passion for cleaning. The hotels Operations Director, Stuart Downham praised Sandra’s abilities, maintaining she has been nothing but committed to the hotel and this has been noted in the numerous reviews and she maintains an extremely high standard throughout the hotel.

Tristan Knight, Director of Human Resources at Rocco Forte Brown’s Hotel, said ‘Jolanta cares about her team and listens to their needs, always providing an encouraging and motivating response.  She is an excellent role model and it is clear that she has the respect of her team. The Housekeeping department, as with any hotel, is at the centre of every guest’s stay and leading this team is a passionate and dedicated person’.

‘Her exceptional attention to detail in both pre-stay, during the stay sets us apart as an individual, personable hotel that goes the extra mile for our guests in room experience’.

Rudi Plaut CBE, Chairman of Northmace & Hendon Limited, said:
“Congratulations to Jolanta Vasiliauskiene on winning the very prestigious AA Housekeeper of the Year Award, and to Regina Zemaitiene and Sandra Dean for coming such close Runners Up.  Every year the competition becomes more intense from dozens of Britain’s most efficient hotels, as senior management appreciate the vital importance of the housekeeping function and enter their own Housekeeper.

“The standard of housekeeping impinges on every guest and is one of the principal factors in determining return visits, the life blood of every hotel.  That is why senior management of the best hotels so greatly appreciate their housekeeping department.   With their staff spread throughout the establishment, the Housekeeper needs very special leadership and management skills.  To be recognised as the best in Britain amongst such talented competitors is a real achievement.